One of the most common organizational barriers within the criminal justice system are the language barriers that law enforcement personnel must contend with as they deal with arrestees, parolees, and probationers.

An increasingly common way of overcoming these barriers is to employ "language assistance technology" (LAT). This can be extremely helpful as, at times, the language an arrestee speaks may not even be identifiable to the officer, and he or she will have no idea if their suspect understands the questions being asked or the charges being brought. (In New York, it is estimated that 130 different languages are spoken and 13% of the population has limited ability to communication in English.)

LATs are computer-based programs that can translate the spoken word to English. Once this barrier is removed, both law enforcement personnel and suspects can communicate more effectively.